Afghanistan has claimed responsibility for a series of retaliatory drone strikes on Pakistani military targets, escalating the already tense border conflict between the two nations.

Kabul asserts that it successfully destroyed Pakistan's Kohat military base, described as a key command centre near the disputed Durand Line. This follows hot on the heels of an earlier Afghan attack on the strategically vital Nur Khan airbase in Rawalpindi, reported ET News.

The Afghan defence ministry announced the Kohat strikes via a statement on X, detailing damage to military installations, ammunition depots, and soldiers' residential quarters. Officials portrayed the operation as a precise aerial assault, underscoring Kabul's capability to project power across the border in response to perceived aggressions.

Tensions ignited further after Pakistani artillery shelled the Alisher-Terezai district in Afghanistan's Khost province. Local reports indicate at least four civilians from one family perished, with three others wounded, fuelling outrage in Kabul and prompting the immediate counteroffensive.

Afghan authorities have also levelled accusations against the Pakistan Air Force for striking fuel depots of the private carrier Kam Air near Kandahar Airport. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid highlighted that these facilities provided essential aviation fuel to domestic flights and even United Nations-operated aircraft, branding the attack as an infringement on civilian infrastructure.

The Nur Khan airbase strike earlier marked a significant escalation. This Pakistan Air Force hub, situated near Rawalpindi, handles critical transport logistics, aerial refuelling, and command coordination. Its proximity to Pakistan's Strategic Plans Division—which manages the nation's nuclear arsenal—amplifies the strike's strategic weight.

Analysts draw parallels to India's Operation Sindoor last year, when an Indian missile reportedly crippled a command-and-control centre at Nur Khan. Subsequent satellite imagery verified the destruction, positioning the event as a pivotal moment in Indo-Pak hostilities and demonstrating the base's vulnerability to precision strikes.

Cross-border hostilities have surged since February, with reports of Pakistani airstrikes on Kabul and other Afghan urban centres. This pattern of tit-for-tat aggression reflects deeper structural frictions rooted in the Durand Line dispute, a colonial-era boundary rejected by Kabul.

Since the Taliban's 2021 takeover, Islamabad has repeatedly urged Afghanistan to curb militant groups like the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which Kabul allegedly shelters. The TTP, ideologically aligned with the Afghan Taliban yet operating autonomously, has intensified attacks on Pakistani soil.

Insurgent violence has proliferated in Pakistan's frontier regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Groups such as the TTP and the Balochistan Liberation Army have orchestrated frequent ambushes and bombings, often spilling over from Afghan territory and exacerbating bilateral distrust.

These developments signal a dangerous spiral, where border skirmishes risk broader conflagration. Both sides possess asymmetric capabilities—Pakistan's conventional airpower versus Afghanistan's drone prowess—potentially drawing in regional powers like India, Iran, or China.

International observers warn that unchecked escalation could destabilise South Asia's volatile security landscape. Diplomatic channels, including backchannel talks via Qatar or Saudi Arabia, may offer the only viable de-escalation path amid mounting civilian tolls and infrastructure losses.

The Kohat claim, if verified, would represent Afghanistan's boldest cross-border operation to date, challenging Pakistan's military dominance and testing the resolve of its leadership in Islamabad.

ET News